Unique Table Names

There are tons of creative ways to personalize your wedding day and table names seems to be one of the newer trends. Many bride and grooms want their big day to excude their personalities as a couple and this is an easy way to do it. It is also an easy way to incorporate a theme. Rather then seat your guests at table 1,2,3, etc, you can give each table a unique name. The bonus is that the names have no apparent order so you dont have to worry about family members or guests getting upset that they are at the table "after" so and so. (Yes, that really does happen!)

For our wedding, J and I decided to use words that we found to be important in marriage in lieu of table numbers. We chose things like love, friendship, trust, faith, etc. The task was a fun one because we spent the night each chosing a word and then explaining how it was important in our relationship. We were hoping to include that on the tables as well, but that was one of the DIY details we had to cross off our list at the end.

Other great ideas that I had come across along the process:

-Wine Names: J and I are big fans of vino and so naming our tables after different bottles of wine was an idea I adored. This is a perfect idea for a vineyard wedding. The place card holders can even be wine corks! Examples : Merlot, Pinot Grigio, Shiraz, etc. A brief description of the wine and how it is a metaphor for marriage could also be a fun way to incorporate this idea.

-Names of Cities: My sister and brother in law used this idea and found post cards from each of the cities. They chose cities they had travelled together, had family in, grew up in, etc. If you and your fiance' are big travelers, you can list names of all the cities you have been and ones you plan to travel to together. You could also put a picture of you both while in that city!

-Hobbies: Anything that you and your fiance do together frequently can be a great way to name tables. If you have a love for beaches, each table can be the name of a beach that you have been on together or again, plan to go on. My friend's sister used this idea for her summer wedding and it exemplfied them perfectly as a couple. The same can be done for ski mountains, golf courses, etc

-Song names: I saw this on a blog while I was doing some research and thought it was a great idea. The bride and groom were avid music lovers and they chose the name of a song for each table, placing the lyrics on each table as well.

-The word "Love" in different languages: This one of my favs and we tackled with the idea of using it as well, but weren't able to due to the amount of tables we had. Its a great idea and exemplfies love having no limits or barriers. Some of the romance languages sound beautiful, but we struggled with how some of the languages sounded after about 12. Still, a very unique and romantic idea.

-Where you met/Got engaged: Weddings are the best place to tell our sappy love stories. Maybe it was college, maybe it was high school, maybe it was via the internet, but a great way to tell a story is to name each table after something that was significant on your first date and then have the story of the significance on the table for the guests to read. For instance, if you met at college, you could have each table be the name of different locales that your love bloomed. This is fun for the guests and equally fun for you and your fiance to do. The same type of thing can be done to tell your engagement story. Again, fun to share with your guests and great to reminsce with together.

There are a number of other creative ways we have seen bride and grooms personalize their tables and we would love to hear yours as well. This is just one of the many fabulous details that can help personalize your big day

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DIY -Luminary Love

There is no question about it, I am probably one of the least creative people out there so whenever I read about DIY on wedding blogs, I cringed a bit wishing I had more a little more Martha in me. There are lots of easy DIY details that add so much to weddings and I wanted to be sure to include some in order to personalize our affair, but it took a lot of effort and help from my mom, sisters and friends to make that happen. I find that the influence of a wedding definately adds a few things to a woman's repertoire, creativity being one of them. I now kind of miss the hands on tasks involved and look forward to helping others create such things for their own affairs.

One of the creative touches I added were luminary bags. Sounds like such a silly idea, but the effect when massively produced is phenomenal and so very cost effective. The outside of my venue had a path leading to a circular driveway type and so I decided to light this path up for when my guests left in the evening. And all I needed were white luminary bags that I ordered online at Lumabase for next to nothing and a trusty Martha Stewart patterened hole puncher(which can be used again in other diy wedding projects like stationary). I chose a hole puncher that reminded me of lace which mimiced my gown and simply punched the top, similiar to the luminary bags picture above.

The work involved was a bit more intense then anticipated as we needed 150 bags to be punched individually. This is one of those projects I suggest brides start during that "lull" we so frequently discuss. Hindsight is 20/20 and my experience was hustling to get these bags punched during the month leading up to the wedding. While at work, my mother was busy punching away and I spent a weekend outdoors trying to get some last summer sun while punching these bags, one at a time (it's all about multitasking ladies!). In the end, it was well worth it. It produced a simple and special touch that not only looked amazing, but added warmth and love to the affair. Unfortunately, I never got a picture of the luminaries lighting up the path as a hole -total bummer- but I still do remember the love and satisfaction I got when sneaking a peek outside the front door and seeing the pathway all lit up.

I adore the patterns in these bags featured on Elizabeth Anne Design which are a bit more intricate. The lace detail pictured left would have been perfect for our wedding day. I also love how they used these bags as a different sort of decoration throughout the venue rather then outside. There are so many fun ways to incorporate this idea and it takes the ordinary candle decor a step further. While I believe there is nothing more romantic than candles throughout the wedding to set the tone and mood of the affair, luminary bags help to take that feel one step further.

The details of the big day really help pull it all together ..What other sorts of DIY details are you planning to add or did you add to help personalize your big day ?

Escort Card Adorement

We don't want to waste your time re-posting other blog's post, but I couldn't resist sharing this wedding from JuneBug Weddings. Doesn't get much better then this... Escort cards doubley serving as pristine decor; vintage vases filled with beautiful blooms and tied with guests names. Utter Perfection.

Any other unique escort card ideas to share? Let us know. S & W had a great idea, using candy apples as their escort cards. Fit perfectly into their fall wedding.

To see more visit, Junebug Weddings & Duet Weddings

http://junebugweddings.com/blogs/what_junebug_loves/archive/2010/05/19/vintage-vase-wedding-escort-cards.aspx

http://www.duet-weddings.com/index.html

Photography credits go to Max Wagner Photography

Happiness is in the details

Have I mentioned I love details. Shoe shots, invitation suites, ring dishes, and funky socks make me swooooon. Seriously, it's not normal how excited I get about little details. Here are some of my favorite shots



this image is from a wedding featured on Elizabeth Anne Designs by photographer Susan Stripling. I love the beauty in the simple flower shot and the handwriting on the name tag. It's so simply beautiful, it's the small details that I am so glad my photgrapher shot at my own wedding.




This perfect shot was also featured on EAD (can you tell she's a favorite of mine) and it was captured by photographer Jill Thomas. I love monograms and they were featured throughout my wedding. I think they are such a simple way to personalize the day.